British Films Directory

Film Detail

Guest House Paradiso

Synopsis

Guest House Paradiso is the much-anticipated feature debut of two popular UK comedians, Rik Mayall and Adrian Edmondson. The anarchic story of the world's worst hotel was written by the pair, directed by Edmondson and produced by Phil McIntyre, the music and live show promoter who had worked with Mayall and Edmondson on their live show. The trio had long wanted to make a feature together and funding came from Video Vision, a division of the then-PolyGram Filmed Entertainment, and now Universal Pictures International (UPI).

"With the opportunities available to Rik (Mayall) and Ade (Edmondson), it has been easier for them to take the course of least resistance and to write a book, do a TV series, or act in somebody else's film, that somebody else has financed, than actually to do their own thing," says McIntyre. "But things became easier so we made a film."

In addition to Mayall and Edmondson, the cast is populated by some of Europe's most dynamic acting talent including Vincent Cassel, Helene Mathieu and Bill Nighy.

"There's only one criterion in the whole film, which is that it's very funny," Mayall explains. "We find it's much better to build your own world, to make a fantasy and invite people into it. It's a world where the level of reality is such that you can do the kind of things we do, such as be swung around by meathooks through your nose without it seeming unreal."

Shooting took place in April 1999 at Ealing Studios and on location on the Isle of Wight. Universal International Pictures released the film in the UK in April 2000.